A Twist in Time
by AnimeWolfGirl16
Summary: Xion had expected herself to get erased by Roxas and return to Sora, her mission fulfilled. What she didn't expect was to wake up and see a face identical to her best friend's... (BBS timeline) (AquaXTerra) (XionXRoxas, mentioned) (possible XionXVentus)
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I do not own any people, places, etc. in Kingdom Hearts. It all belongs to its respectful owners.**

* * *

 _Prologue_

 _Darkness was the first thing that surrounded her. She had expected this; it had been a part of what she had come to realize when she made her decision, back in the mansion to rejoin Sora._

But this darkness… _She found herself shivering, her thoughts now instantly being drawn towards her last moments with her best friend. The pain, betrayal that she had felt, that he had most likely felt as well, was still fresh in her mind._

It was the right thing to do though…

 _She had convinced herself of this so many times, but now she was starting to doubt her decision again._

What makes Sora so special that it had to be him? Why couldn't it have been Roxas… or even me?

 _She knew her thoughts must have been influenced by Roxas as well, since he was a part of Sora just like she was, but they still stung. This was just the way things had to be, and they both had to accept it sooner or later…_

But… I don't want to be alone…

 _The thought caused the darkness to draw closer to her, trying to snuff out her remaining light. She tried to push against it, despite it not really having any physical form, but couldn't get a grasp on her surroundings. Holding out her hand, as if to summon the keyblade again, before feeling that coldness that she had first felt when she lost her keyblade._

I-I can't summon it again…

 _Her panic caused it to close around her, causing her to shut her eyes in defeat. The darkness couldn't be defeated, not this time. She didn't have Roxas or Axel to help her now…_

" _Don't give up, Xion!" The voice caused her to gasp, glancing around in surprise, her eyes searching for her friend._

Roxas?

 _The only thing they landed on was a small orb of light, floating directly in front of her face. She could feel solid ground beneath her feet now, as if the light had chased away the darkness. Warmth spread through her as she touched the light, holding it gently in her hands, as if it might bring her friend to her._

" _You're stronger than that! Stronger than whatever destiny they have planned for you!"_

 _Tears streamed her eyes as she heard the voice of the blonde boy who had been her best friend throughout her time in the Organization. It still seemed like somehow he was looking out for her…_

Will you come see me? Will I ever get to see you again?

 _Almost as if in answer to her silent questions, the light grew brighter, causing her to shield her eyes with one hand, trying to hold on with the other. The next thing she knew, she felt herself falling._

* * *

 **So while Kingdom Hearts 3 takes up most, if not all, of my free time these days, I thought I'd post these chapters I wrote based on an idea if Xion was sent back to the Birth by Sleep timeline. While this might sound similar to my Ephermera fanfiction, this one was actually created first although I'm not sure whether I will continue or not. Just figured I'd give you all the chance to read what I had. I hope you all enjoy the few chapters!**

 **-AnimeWolfGirl16**


	2. Chapter 1

Chapter 1

* * *

A flash of light across the night sky alerted Ventus- or as his friends call him Ven- to what appeared to be a star soaring across the sky. This in itself wasn't what confused the boy, but rather the fact that it seemed to be heading _towards_ the group of three friends.

 _I thought Terra said that each star was another world…?_

"But if that's so…?" The blonde muttered under his breath, causing his two friends to glance over at him.

"Something wrong, Ven?" Terra's strong hand ruffled the blonde's hair, causing the younger boy to absentmindedly swat the hand away as he stared at the star, unease causing him to shuffle on his feet.

"Not really, it's just…" The fourteen year-old pointed towards where the star was, still drawing ever closer, causing his friends to glance where he was pointing. "Don't you think that's a _little_ unusual during a meteor shower?"

A hand on his wrist caused him to glance over at Aqua, the bluenette pulling him away from the path that the star was currently heading towards, concern in her eyes. The action caused Terra to follow them, with the small group heading over to stand beneath the archway leading indoors.

"Stars sometimes come close to here, but normally not _that_ close." Aqua's voice showed her confusion at the strange occurrence, and he watched as she put something behind her. He didn't glimpse it long enough to know what the objects were; only seeing three different colors before they disappeared from view.

 _But what could it be?_

The trio watched as the star passed their location, still heading in its decent towards the planet's surface. He glanced between his friends, his eyes following the star in some deep-rooted concern, when seeing that they also seemed concerned.

"Then why-?" His voice cut off as the sound of an impact was heard before the small area shook.

The unbalance caused the youngest of the three to stumble, held up only by Terra grabbing his arm and pulling him back. The shaking subsided a moment later, with all three of the friends hesitating a moment, glancing back and forth at each other. Concern was in their gazes as they glanced towards where the star had headed, most likely where it had crashed as well, before setting a brisk pace towards the training area.

"What could have-?!" Terra's exclamation was cut off when they arrived at the top of the hill, glancing towards where the crash was. The surrounding ground had been broken away by the impact, but what caused them all to rush towards the site was what was inside the area.

 _A… girl?_

The pale, almost white skin could be seen on her face as the group got closer, black hair framing her face. Ven glanced over at Aqua when he heard his friend gasp, seeing the look of horror on her face. He glanced back towards the unconscious girl as both of his friends arrived at her side. The girl was covered in a black coat, but what caused him to flinch away slightly was the sight of tares and blood staining the garment.

 _What…?_ His mind struggled to take in the scene, his gaze focused on the girl's face as she breathed.

"Terra!" The brown-haired man nodded sharply as he came to carefully pick up the girl at Aqua's cry, shifting her so that her head was cradled against his chest, trying to prevent any more injuries from occurring. The blonde's gaze was automatically drawn towards where the worst injury was, a diagonal slash from her shoulder down to her side, where blood was still welling up in the wound.

 _This… happened recently!?_

"Ven!" Aqua's sharp, commanding voice brought him back to reality, causing him to stumble slightly in shock. His friends were glancing back at him in concern, with Terra just a bit ahead, the girl cradled to his chest. Understanding her command, he nodded, jogging ahead to go wake the Master.

"Y-yeah, I'll meet you there!" He went into a full on sprint, sliding around the corridors in the castle with ease that came from constantly wandering them. The Master's bedroom wasn't far from where the main hall was, he just hoped that he'd get there in time.

 _Who… is she? Where did she come from?_

* * *

"She'll be fine Ven." Terra's voice startled him out of his thoughts, causing him to jerk away when he realized he'd been staring at their newest visitor once again. A light blush appeared on the blonde's face, causing the brown-haired man to emit a small laugh at the younger's reaction. "Aqua's the best healer we have. There's no reason to worry anymore."

The boy nodded, his gaze focusing back on the light breaths that the girl was taking.

"I know, it's just…"

"You can't help but worry?" Aqua's small voice caused him to jerk his head over towards her, the door making a soft clicking noise as she closed it behind her.

The blue-haired woman looked exhausted, most likely a byproduct of using her magic so extensively as well as how late it was in the night. After they had woken Master Eraqus, who had announced that the girl had to stay here until her injuries healed, he had told them what spells to use to heal the girl's wounds. The Master would come to check on them periodically throughout the rest of the night, the man already having to stay up due to the coming ceremony the next morning.

 _Wait! The ceremony!_ His thoughts halted after that, his gaze turning to one of worry as he gazed at his friends.

"You both should be resting!" At his exclamation, the two older teens shared a look, before Aqua walked over to rest her hand on Ven's shoulder.

"We could say the same thing to you Ven." Her bright smile caused him to frown at their predicament.

"Yeah but…" The argument died on his lips as he glanced over at Terra, the older man giving him a smile as well.

"After all, wasn't it you who woke us up in the first place?" The man's teasing caused Ven to look like he was about to protest once more, before he gave up, merely making a noise of discontent.

"The exam's tomorrow though… You both need to be at your best." His pout caused the two older Keyblade wielders to let out small laughs. They shared one more look before turning their attention to their youngest friend, and the unconscious girl lying on the spare bed.

"We'll be fine. Besides…" Aqua cut off, allowing Terra to finish her statement a moment later.

"Something tells me we wouldn't have been getting much sleep either way."

Ven's gaze returned to the girl, his argument failing the more he looked at her sleeping face. The blonde knew that he wouldn't have been strong enough, or as advanced in magic, to help the girl as his friends had. He let out a sigh, finally admitting defeat as he turned back towards his friends.

"Fine, but you at least have to try to get some sleep tonight." The smiles that they gave him clearly meant that they were trying not to laugh at his attempt to act older, but they were genuine none the less.

"Will do." Terra mock saluted him, causing the younger boy to stick his tongue out at his friend's action, with both of them getting a laugh from Aqua at their behavior.

"I almost forgot!" At Aqua's slightly raised voice, and gasp before that, both boys watched as she reached behind her, grabbing the star-shaped items that Ven had seen her slip away earlier. "I meant to give this to you both earlier but we got a bit side-tracked."

The blue-haired woman held out the charms for them to see, with Ven noticing right away that there were three of the star-shaped charms. Each one had a different color scheme; one being orange with gold trimming, another blue with silver trimming, and the last being green with silver trimming. He glanced up at Aqua in confusion, with her giving him a small smile.

"It's to commemorate our Mark of Mastery tomorrow." At that, she handed the charms out to her friends. The orange one going to Terra and the green one being handed to Ven, with the blue one being kept by Aqua.

"I get one too?" Ven's small question, one of disbelief since he was the only one in their trio that was not taking his exam tomorrow, caused Aqua to give him another smile.

"Of course, after all, you are our friend." The woman's eyes got a faraway look in them as she continued, most likely recalled something she had read in a book. "Somewhere out there, there is a star-shaped fruit that symbolizes an unbreakable connection. It's said that whoever has charms shaped like this fruit will always find their way back to each other."

All three of them were silent as they contemplated the meaning that these charms represented. Ven stared down at his green Wayfinder, a warmth making its way into his chest at her words.

 _An unbreakable connection…_

"Technically I think you're supposed to make them out of seashells, but I did the best with what I had." Her voice had a light tone to it, causing Ven to glance up at her as she smiled at the two of them, causing the blonde to smile back at her.

"Oy, sometimes you can be such a girl." Terra's teasing remark had to ruin the mood that had been created due to the gifts. This caused the blue-haired woman to glance over at him, a slight pout on her face.

"What's that supposed to mean?" The man didn't answer, instead shrugging as if the answer could have been anything. This caused the youngest of the three to let out a laugh, with the two glancing at him in surprise.

"Sorry, sorry! It's just that you two-!" Ven couldn't finish his sentence as he continued to laugh at their behavior. The two friends glanced at each other before adding their own laughter to the air. They all froze when the girl moaned, shifting in her sleep. For a moment they had forgotten that another person was in the room with them.

 _And that she's sleeping…_

He glanced over at his two friends, before back out the small window in the room. The meteor shower had long since ended, with the only light in the sky being that of the pale moon. Terra made a motion to stand up, most likely to usher Ven out of there and back to bed, but the younger boy beat him to it, standing up and gesturing towards the door.

"Why don't you two try and get some sleep?" The blue-haired woman instantly frowned at his proposal looking as if she was going to protest. "Don't worry, I'll be fine. I can look after her for now until the Master comes back."

Aqua was still frowning but moved a bit towards the door when Terra came over, laying his hands on her shoulders and ushering her towards the door, a soft look on his face.

"We'll take your advice, but promise us you'll go to bed once the Master returns, ok?" Ven nodded at his friend's statement, making a silent promise to them as well. The brown-haired man raised a hand in farewell, causing Ven to do the same before the two older Keyblade wielders left the room. He waited a few moments before sinking back down into the chair beside the bed. A sigh left him as he focused once more on the sleeping form of their visitor.

 _I wonder if she'll wake up soon…_

Most likely not, if Ven took her injuries into account. Aqua had tried to heal them to the best of her ability, but some still required ointment and bandages to make sure they healed properly. The boy let out a small yawn, not being able to stop himself as the noise came out. Trying to rub the sleep out of his eyes, he stretched a bit before shaking his head, his gaze returning to the black-haired girl.

 _Tomorrow's always another day…_


	3. Chapter 2

Chapter 2

" _Why am I doing all this? Working for the Organization?" The question slipped out of her mouth before she could stop it, causing her blonde-haired friend to look over at her. The boy contemplated her question for a moment, shock on his face before recognition replaced it._

" _Well, we're the only ones who can use Keyblades… so the Organization needs us." He paused for a moment before continuing, reciting the words that their friend Axel had told them about their purpose in the group of Nobodies. "'Cos we're 'special'… right?"_

 _Xion glanced down at her melting ice cream as he said this, a feeling welling up deep inside her. Her recent battle with the imposter flashed through her mind, his words still ringing in her ears, as if he had injured her physically._

" _Special…?" She repeated the words, not quite sure she believed what her friend was saying. A frail smile, one full of sadness and confusion, appeared on her face, despite the fact that her friend couldn't see it._

"This Keyblade. It's a sham-worthless."

"No matter. I always knew you were a defect."

"We can't afford to expend any more chances on you."

" _Maybe we are both special. But I don't think we're the same."_

 _With the words playing over in her head, she got up, summoning a portal of darkness near the edge of the Watchtower. She didn't wait to see her friend's reaction to her words, or to think to stick around for Axel, instead walking through the portal leading to her room. The familiar white wall didn't help the pain in her chest, causing her to clutch where a heart should have been, had she been a Somebody, the dark fabric becoming rumpled together._

" _If I'm a Nobody, then why does it hurt so much?"_

* * *

" _Roxas… I meet up with you two every day for ice cream, right? Why do I do that?" Axel's voice caused her to stir, the pounding in her head suddenly gone._

But where am I? We were in Twilight Town…

 _The soft feeling of a bed underneath her caused her to realize that she must have remembered something again._

But… what was it again? Why did we leave instead of waiting for me to wake up?

" _Hmm… dunno…" Roxas' reply caused her to focus on their conversation, listening to the sound of her friends always helped to calm her thoughts._

" _I do it… 'cos you're my best friends." Axel's statement was said casually, but Xion felt like it was anything_ but _casual, a warm feeling beginning to appear in her chest._

Best friends…

 _The feeling felt nostalgic to her somehow, even though she wasn't supposed to be able to 'feel' anything due to being a Nobody. She figured that it had to be a by-product of her memories, the ones she couldn't quite remember._

" _We are?"_

" _Yeah. So of course I'm gonna worry about Xion."_

Thanks Axel.

 _She thought about letting them know that she was awake, but refrained from doing so when she didn't hear Roxas say anything. She could tell that it had upset him back when they had all discussed the topic of 'Best Friends' before, as it had done the same to her._

Did he change his mind? About wanting to be… best friends?

 _Her doubts were cleared a moment later when his voice was heard through the darkness._

" _So what happened? What changed?"_

"… _Nothing. I just didn't realize it until now."_

We… were always best friends? _The thought made sense to her now that she looked back on their friendship. If they all hadn't been best friends but just friends, then they wouldn't have gone to such lengths to help each other._

" _Axel… It…" From Roxas' inflection, Xion could tell that he was holding back his excitement and 'happiness', but only for a moment. "Took you long enough!"_

 _The black-haired girl heard a 'smack' noise as her blonde friend slapped Axel on the shoulder, and then another noise as their mentor figure hit the wall. Surprise hit Xion, and apparently Roxas as well since she heard him run over to their friend, causing her to shift on the bed. Peeking her eyes open, she saw Roxas shaking Axel, a worried look on his face._

" _Axel! Are you okay? Axel!"_

 _She didn't hear any reply from Axel, causing her concern, until Roxas backed up a bit, causing her to see their red-haired friend's face. The man was sticking his tongue out at Roxas, much to the blonde's annoyance._

" _What the heck?!" Their combined reaction caused laughter out of the girl, causing her two friends- no best friends- to glance over at her in surprise._

" _You two are such good friends."_

 _Her friends moved towards the bed in surprise, causing her to sit up slowly._

" _Xion!" Roxas' bright smile caused her to give him a small one in return. When she saw the red-haired man, who was currently rubbing his hand through his hair in embarrassment, she let out a laugh._

" _You… How long had you been awake?" She contemplated the answer for a moment before replying._

" _Not telling!" She copied the face that Axel had given Roxas, causing a groan from the older man and a laugh from Roxas._

" _Sheesh… Feeling better?" She shook her head at Axel's question, taking a moment to glance around the room. The colorful seashells that Roxas had left her were right where he had left them, on the bed beside her pillow, adding color to the otherwise white room._

" _Uh-huh… I just got a little dizzy. Sorry to worry you guys." The smiles that she got from her friends, although Axel tried to look like he was still slightly annoyed at her, she knew the difference though, caused her to give them one of her own._

" _Try not to scare us like that anymore, huh?" She nodded once more, motioning for them to get back to their mission so that Saix wouldn't come scold them. Her friends turned back towards her as they reached the open door, turning to give her one more reassuring smile._

" _Take it easy today, okay?" Roxas' concern caused her to nod once more, her chest fluttering a bit._

" _I will. Thank you, both of you." She waved 'good-bye' for now, watching as they did the same before leaving. She let out a sigh before lying back on the bed, her gaze drawing back towards the seashells. A smile made its way onto her face as she picked one up._

Best friends…

* * *

Light was the first thing to hit her, then pain, causing her eyes to open.

 _How… am I here?_

She shook her head lightly, her hands clutching the white covers underneath her. Confusion hit her when she realized that it was _light out_ , causing her concern as she looked around.

 _The World that Never Was doesn't have daylight… only nighttime…_

The walls were still the familiar white, but there was more furniture and even a brown door, something that was always white back in her room.

 _But, how could I have survived?_

The last thing she had remembered was darkness, and before that… Her gaze wandered to the edge of the bed, where a boy was lying in a chair, his head resting on the side of the bed she was currently on.

 _It can't be!?_

The familiar blonde hair, spiky and windswept, caused her to gasp. His outfit was different from what she remembered, but he was still wearing some black on his new outfit, the colors crossing over with white on one side of his jacket. His eyes were closed in a peaceful sleep, but she was sure if he opened them that they would be the familiar sapphire color that they always where. Tears began to well up in her eyes as she stared at the familiar form of her friend.

 _Roxas…_

She let out a gasp of pain when she realized that she had tried to sit up, her hand moving towards where bandages were wrapped around her chest, something feeling like it was trying to pull apart. Confusion hit her once more when she realized that she seemed to be covered in bandages of all sizes, as well as her Organization cloak being gone, leaving only the black pants the she wore underneath.

 _Where is it?!_

She glanced quickly around the room, her panic being calmed by seeing the familiar garment lying folded on the dresser across the room. She let out a breath, a small smile making its way onto her face.

 _At least it survived the fight… I'm not sure where we could have gotten new clothes. Although Roxas seems to have found some while I was passed out…_

She glanced over at the blonde-haired boy when she heard a light groan come from him. She watched with humor as he slowly woke up, stretching automatically as he rubbed his eyes tiredly. Sure enough when she got a look at them, she saw that they were indeed that dark blue that was so familiar. His hair was in slight disarray from the way he had slept and his tired eyes blinked over at her. She let out a laugh at his zombie-like behavior.

"Good morning sleepy-head."

It took a moment for her to see recognition in his eyes, making her smile widen when his eyes went wide and a smile appeared on his face as well.

"You're awake!" She nodded, watching as he glanced at the slightly ajar door before back towards her. "I have to go tell A-!" The blonde-haired boy cut off suddenly before glancing away quickly, a blush rising on his face. She looked at him in confusion, wondering why he was acting strangely.

"What's wrong?"

The blonde refused to look at her, merely staring at the wall, as his blush deepened.

"U-uh… you don't…" He pointed towards her, causing her to glance down at herself in confusion.

She suddenly realized what the problem was, causing a blush to deepen on her own face as something constricted in her chest. She frantically glanced around for the black shirt that she had always worn underneath the cloak, panicking when she couldn't see it, instead pulling the blanket up to hide her form. The white fabric did little to help, due to the lightness of it.

 _Where did it go?!_

Her hand rose up against her own will, smacking Roxas on the face, despite the fact that he was turned away from her. It took a moment for her to realize what she had done, making her gasp and drop the blanket, her hand reaching out towards him, before her other one quickly picked back up the blanket and held it back in place.

"I'm so sorry! I don't know what happened!" The boy turned back towards her, not looking directly at her instead opting to stare down at the covers, away from her.

"It's fine. It's my fault to begin with. I should have made sure that someone gave you back your shirt…" Xion bit her lip, frowning at the angry red mark that was now on his face. She shook her head, reaching out towards him, her hand floating over the space, causing the blonde to freeze up.

"No it isn't. Here… just let me…" She dropped off at that, her eyes closing in concentration as she conjured up a spell.

She could feel the warmth leave her hand, going out towards the injury, as well as the magic leaving her. Opening her eyes a moment later when she felt the feeling fade, she saw the green light go away as well, nodding in satisfaction when she saw that the mark was gone. The blonde was staring at her, his mouth slightly ajar, with the blush being gone as well.

"You… can use magic?" She found his whispered question strange and she nodded, a smile on her face as she watched one appear on his as well.

"Yep! You remember at least that much, don't you?" If the girl was honest with herself though, she was surprised if he could remember anything. Naminé had told her that no one would remember her once she disappeared…

 _But if I'm back then the memories should return, right?_

The boy's smile quickly turned into a look of confusion, his head tilting a bit at her statement.

"Huh? Should I?" She stared at him in confusion as well, her happiness fading as she took another look at the boy.

"What?" She blinked at him, and he stared back at her. She let out a small laugh, feeling sadness run through her at his words even though she knew that this would most likely happen.

 _Except I wasn't supposed to come back from it…_

"Of course, Rox-." She began but cut off the more she looked at him. The boy did indeed look exactly like a copy of her friend, but slightly younger.

 _Almost a year or so…_

She glanced once more around the room, feeling the sadness well up in her once more. The room might look familiar but as she glanced out the window, there wasn't anything that she recognized. This wasn't anywhere she knew, she shouldn't actually be here in the first place.

 _Why did I think that…?_

"Hey, are you okay?" She glanced over at the blonde boy- one moment ago so familiar and now a complete stranger- his face a look of concern. She stared back at him, confusion in her own eyes until she felt something drip down her face and land on her hand. She lifted the appendage up, staring at the tiny water droplet on her pale skin.

 _I'm… crying?_

Something squeezed painfully in her chest, causing her to glance away, towards the opposite wall. It hurt to look at the boy who was so similar to her best friend.

 _But he's not…_

"Y-yeah…" Xion began, moving her legs carefully as she felt a sort of detachment try to take hold of her. "I'm sorry but I'm not supposed to be here." She stood up, bracing herself against the wall so she wouldn't fall, the blanket still clutched to her pale body. "I thought you were someone else…"

 _My best friend, Roxas…_

Despite her best attempt, more tears streamed down her face, causing her to stop and wipe them away.

"Uh…" The boy glanced at her in confusion and some other emotion that she didn't recognize, his hand outstretched towards her. She started to make her way slowly towards where her cloak was lying. Once she had it on, she could leave in a dark corridor and make her way back to Twilight Town.

 _Back to where I'm supposed to be…_

"I really don't think that…" His face whipped towards the door in exasperation before glancing back towards her, conflicting emotions on his face. She glanced away from him, her hand reaching out towards her cloak.

 _Then everything can go back to the way it was…_

She felt confusion, and a bit of anger, when the boy's hand grasped her arm gently, stopping her from grabbing the black fabric of the cloak. She glanced towards him in confusion and pain, watching as he took a breath before meeting her gaze.

"You can't just leave. You're injured." She tried to get him to let go, feeling pain run through her when she did so, causing her to stop struggling.

"What does it matter to you?" She asked, her voice cold, trying to make him leave her alone. The longer she stayed with him, the more she saw what he had in common with her best friend. "I don't belong here."

 _But he's not Roxas…_

The boy flinched at that, but didn't leave go of her hand. Xion moved her other hand, using her elbow to keep the sheet up, which didn't really work as well as she thought it would, to grasp the edge of the black fabric. The weight of the chains didn't help all that well with pulling the cloak off of the desk, adding to the weight of the garment, but she finally managed to pull it off.

"It doesn't matter, what does is that you're injured!" The blonde gave her cloak a momentary glance before focusing his gaze back on Xion. "You shouldn't be moving around yet!"

She allowed the blanket to drop, causing the boy to glance away once more, and struggled to get the black cloak on. It was a lot harder to do with the use of only one hand…

 _I'll have to get him to release me to get my other arm through the sleeve…_

She winced, pausing a moment to allow the pain to pass before trying to pull the fabric up more over her body.

"I'll be fine. I can heal myself." The boy looked conflicted once more as he glanced behind him at the slightly ajar door, as if waiting for something.

"But you don't even know where you are!" The boy's exclamation caused her to stop for a moment, his voice suddenly lowering. "Doesn't that make you scared?"

She glanced at his downcast face, almost as if he was remembering something, before she looked around the room once more. The only other two exits besides her corridors were the window, which she would have to break open, or the door.

"I think I can manage." She stated, thinking back to when she had gone to all those different worlds on missions before. Each time she had learned the terrain and places that she would have to go, always having an escape route.

 _I can learn now…_

She tried to move her hand away from the boy's, trying to get him to leave her go, but found that he still wouldn't budge. It would be problematic if she had to fight him in her state…

"You can't leave, not yet." The determination in the boy's face reminded her so much of her friend that it hurt. Roxas had been determined to bring her back to the Organization, and she had pointed her Keyblade at him…

 _I'm sorry Roxas…_

"Leave me go!" Xion lurched forward, surprising the boy and causing him to lose his grip on her, falling down in the process. Pain lanced through her chest, causing her to gasp and fall down as well, her vision going black for a moment. Xion focused her gaze on the carpet, using that as a medium to focus her breathing. She tried to move the coat the rest of the way around her, even if she couldn't get it zipped up it would provide enough protection, but found that she didn't have the strength to.

 _What do I do now?_

She glanced over to see the boy looking at her, pain in his own eyes, causing her to glance away. Her gaze stopped, however, when she saw the green star-shaped item lying on the carpet a short distance away from the boy.

 _He has a lucky charm as well?_

"I didn't want to have to do this, but…" His words confused her, causing her to glance back at him as the boy took a deep breath.

"Wind." The simple word caused a swirling gust to go around the black-haired girl, confusion running through her as the element lifted her up off the floor and back onto the bed. She tried to pull away as the vortex continued, focused now down on her hands and feet, keeping her there, but found that she was trapped.

 _What?_

The boy sighed, picking his way up off the floor, as well as grabbing the charm and sticking it in his back pocket, before glancing at her. She felt anger strike her at his treatment, knowing that it wasn't right to imprison someone against their will.

"You can't keep me here!" Despite her words, she knew that so far she was trapped.

 _But the moment his magic runs out…_

"I can at least try until my friends get here." The boy stated, moving to sit back down into the chair by the bed. "They should be here any-." The boy's voice broke off, as well as the concentration on his magic, causing the girl to lurch forward once again.

It seemed that the wind holding down her hands had left, but not the ones holding her feet, causing her to only manage to lean forward off the bed and towards the floor. She closed her eyes, waiting for the pain to spread, more than what she was already feeling.

"Careful!" She felt hands steadying her, pushing against her shoulders gently back towards the bed so that she wouldn't fall. She opened her eyes to stare into the same blue as her own, concern held in them. "You'll get hurt."

She glanced away, freezing up when the rest of the cloak was draped across her shoulder.

"There. Maybe now things won't be so awkward…" The boy's small laugh caused her to glance at him in confusion.

"Why?" She whispered, causing the boy to glance at her in confusion. "Why would you help me? After everything I've done…"

The boy sat back down in the chair, while she moved her arm carefully through her cloak, as he contemplated her question.

"I might not know what you've done, but…" He cut off, giving her a small smile. "No one deserves to be alone."

Her breath caught at his answer, causing her to stare at him, tears forming in her eyes again.

 _Alone…_

That's what she was. This boy, he wasn't Roxas, nor did it seem like Axel was around either. If anything, she would be surprised if the red-haired man still wanted to even be her friend.

"Friends…" The boy's face turned into one of confusion at the word, causing the rest of his magic to dissipate. Xion didn't take notice, instead looking down at the carpet in silence as tears began to drip down her face once more. Even if she managed to leave here, where would she go? She couldn't go back to the Organization, she had sworn that she never would, and yet…

 _I just want my friends back…_

"You do have friends, right?" He asked gently, his face one of concern as he looked at her. She nodded, before shaking her head, suddenly unsure of herself.

"I-I used to, I think. I'm not sure they want to be my friends anymore…" _After all I've done, how could they?_

A hand on her shoulder caused her to glance up to see the boy smiling at her, his blonde hair glowing in the light.

"I'm sure it couldn't have been that bad. After all, they are your friends." She wiped away at the tears, a small laugh forming in her throat.

"Are they?" More confusion entered the boy's gaze, and he moved to sitting beside her instead.

"Well of course. Friends don't just abandon friends." He smiled over at her, offering his hand towards her. "My name's Ventus. What's yours?"

She glanced hesitantly at him, taking his hand lightly in hers and shaking it.

 _My name…_

"It's Xion." She whispered out, glad that she had one thing that was her own, while he smiled over at her.

"Xion, it's nice to meet you." She glanced at him, wondering how his personality changed so quickly. One moment ago he was ready to fight her to keep her here and now he was acting as if they were-

 _Friends…_

She glanced up suddenly when a bell rang, glancing over when she felt Ventus move quickly off the bed.

"I'm going to be late!" He rushed towards the door, stopping momentarily to look back at the black-haired girl, confliction in his gaze. "But I can't just…"

She glanced at him, tilting her head to the side a bit.

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing, it's just…" The bell rang again, causing him to glance back out the door, biting his lip as he did so. "My friends are taking this exam and…" He trailed off causing her to glance towards the door as well.

"Oh…"

"Yeah…" He rubbed the back of his head, his hair moving as he did so, another action that he shared with Roxas.

 _I don't want to be alone…_ She found the thought echoing from her time when she was alone in the darkness. Maybe she could… _But we're not friends…_

The boy glanced back at her, coming over to her bedside and sitting back down.

"Say… do you possibly want to come with me?" She glanced over at him in surprise. "It's not nice if I just leave you here after all."

"Like…" She began, glancing over at him shyly. "friends?"

"Huh?" He asked, confused at her words.

"Friends, they hang out and laugh about stuff and eat ice cream…" She trailed off as he let out a laugh.

"Eat ice cream? That sounds pretty good." She glanced over at him to see a bright smile on his face. "Friends, huh? Sure why not! You can call me Ven."

He lightly grabbed her hand, helping her stand up as he did so. It took a moment for Xion to find her balance, with her leaning on Ven as they began to walk towards the door.

 _Friends…_


	4. Chapter 3

**Guest:** This soon enough? :)

 **Supersonicfan7:** Thanks! I'll try to keep at it!

 **The Keeper of Worlds:** Thanks! I'll try to include as much as I can without overwhelming everyone with detail! :)

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Chapter 3

Xion glanced over at the blonde-haired boy sitting beside her. They had made it to the place where the exam was going to take place, the size of the room surprising the black-haired girl, even though they were a bit late. Two older teens stood farther away from them, in front of where three thrones sat.

"See, those are my friends!" Ven stated excitedly, pointing to one each in turn. "Aqua and Terra!"

The black-haired girl nodded, a smile on her face as she glanced at the two teens. Dark blue hair that trailed just past 'Aqua's' chin along with an outfit consisting mostly of blue hues. While Ventus' other friend, 'Terra', wore mostly earthy tones. They had yet to notice that the two had arrived, that or they were really into the ceremony and weren't allowed to look their way. Flashes of what she thought might be memories appeared in her mind, vanishing a moment later, but through them she thought she recognized the two people. From what Ventus- despite his allowing her to call him Ven, she found the action strange- had said about how they found her, the two older teens had been the ones who carried her to the room.

" _Friends… do you think… I could be a friend too?"_ The words that she had said to Roxas back when they had just recently met crossed her mind, causing the young girl to glance away from the two. To keep herself occupied, the Nobody glanced once more around the large enclosure. The stained glass that adorned the various windows still caused something akin to awe from the young girl, something that she had only seen at the Beast's Castle when she was going on missions for the Organization…

 _I wonder what world we are on...?_ The thought crossed her mind before she realized that she thought 'we' not just her. She glanced over at the blonde next to her, ignoring most of what the older man was saying to the participants. It wasn't much of a stretch for her to think that he was Roxas, but just the similarity caused her pain…

 _No… not pain. I don't have a heart to feel pain with…_ She told herself, remembering briefly what Axel had told them about Nobodies. The fact that they were just 'acting' based on previous memories that allowed them to pretend they had hearts. _But my memories… they aren't mine… they're Sora's…_

"Hey… are you ok?" The question from Ven caused her to break out of her thoughts, as she glanced over to see the worried look in his eyes. She nodded slowly, a small smile forming on her face.

"Just… thinking is all…" She broke off as he nodded, a slightly confused look on his face as he continued to stare at her, as if he didn't completely believe her.

"Ok… it's just that you look like you're in pain…" He glanced back at his friends before back over to Xion, his brow creasing as he shifted. "Maybe bringing you here wasn't the best idea…" He offered her his hand as he stood up. She stared at him, glancing back at his two friends.

"But your friends…"

"It's fine. They'll understand." She nodded, getting ready to take his hand and allow him to help her up but stopped when she felt a familiar shift in the air.

"Then let the examination begin!"

With that sentence, orbs of light appeared around the center of the room, causing Xion to go on guard.

 _What?_

"Whoops… looks like it's begun…" She glanced over at Ventus, seeing the sheepish look on his face. She became puzzled when she noticed how relaxed he was, not the slightest bit on guard. Was this a normal occurrence in this world?

"What's-?" Xion began to ask but stopped short when she glanced at Ventus' friends' hands, her face going pale with shock.

 _Keyblades?!_ The design wasn't the same as her and Roxas' keyblades, but the face remained that they were in fact, that same weapon. Her mind began to race with questions that went unanswered. How was it that others beside Roxas and her could use Keyblades? The Organization had said that they were special… the only ones who could capture hearts but if there were others then…?

"Xion?" A hand on her shoulder pulled her out of her thoughts, causing her to jump lightly. The worried look on the other teen's face was more pronounced now, as she stared back and forth between her new friend and his. "Maybe you should sit down? You don't look so good…"

"How is it that they have Keyblades?!" The question came out of her quickly, her panicked look increasing as she watched them attack the orbs of light, oblivious to the two's current situation. Backing up, causing the blonde's hand to drop from her shoulder, she hit a pillar behind them. She couldn't stop the words that tumbled out next in her panic. "Roxas, you and I are the only ones who are supposed to be able to wield them! The Organization said that we were special! If they find out that there are more-!"

"Xion calm down! It's fine-!" The sixteen year old cut off before suddenly tackling Xion to the ground the next moment. "Look out!"

Xion let out a gasp as her body roughly hit the ground, Ven's body crashing down onto hers as he let out a grunt. In the corner of her vision, she could see the orbs take on a darker hue, some of them coming at the two younger teens.

"Ven!" Two voices she didn't know called out the name of the younger boy. Causing him to glance up at his two friends, before back down at her.

"We're fine!"

' _We"?_ The word caused her to realize that despite his friends' concern for his own safety that he had included her too…

"Sorry. Are you ok?" She nodded at his question, watching as he suddenly lept up, a flash of light causing a Keyblade to appear in his hand as well. It wasn't the Kingdom Key that she had been so used to seeing Roxas wield, another stark reminder that this wasn't her friend. "I'll try to explain later, ok?"

She merely nodded in shock, watching as he too, charged at the orbs coming at them, trying to deflect them so that they couldn't reach the girl. Each orb was covered in a veil of Darkness, the light within barely shining through.

 _Could it be the Heartless…?_ That thought alone caused the girl to attempt to get up. She let out a small gasp as pain lanced through her chest, glancing down at her hand to see some blood seeping through her coat once more. She took a deep breath before using the wall to brace herself as she stood up. _No time to be resting…_

Casting a quick cure spell, shaking off the dizzy spell that hit her as she did, she got into her natural fighting stance. She watched the orbs' movements as they focused less of Aqua and Terra and more on the two youngest in the room. The blonde was clearly putting up a good defense, but Xion knew that it would only be a matter of time before one slipped past him and came towards her.

 _And when it does…_ She glanced down at her hand, praying that the Keyblade would answer her call once more. She could distantly feel its presence, but that didn't guarantee that it would appear when she called. Her gaze wandered towards the two older occupants of the room. The man with black hair and white robes looked ready to leap to the younger students help if they needed it but the oldest man sitting in the chair was merely watching with interest. His gaze particularly drawn to where her and Ven were…

 _What's he so interested in…?_ The question was left unanswered as she noticed one of the orbs slip past Ven's guard. Figuring that now was her chance, she rushed towards it, dashing just past the orb before turning back towards it. She outstretched her hand, seeking the familiar weapon. She could feel the familiar warmth and glanced over to see light gathering in the shape of the weapon. Figuring that it would appear in a moment, she rushed back towards the orb, swinging her arms in a slashing arc. What confused her though was the lack of impact on the 'enemy' causing her to glance back at her hands, watching as the light sputtered and faded, not fully forming her Keyblade.

"Xion!" Her gaze turned towards Ventus, his enemy vanishing into nothing as he rushed towards her. She readied a fire spell, figuring that if she didn't have her Keyblade, that she could at least fall back on her magic. What neither of them anticipated was what the other was going to do. Xion released a fire spell at the enemy at the same time that Ven released a wind spell. While the ensuing explosion did more than enough damage to destroy the orb, Xion was caught unprepared, thrown back into the pillar, being knocked out before she even hit the ground.

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 **So… another chapter? :) I can't guarantee I'll be able to keep this up though since I didn't realize how hard it would be to write 'What Purpose?' at the same time as 'A Twist in Time'. The situations are almost parallel with each other, since both Xion and Ephemera are both in the Birth by Sleep Timeline, although things go quite different for each of them. They are also almost exact opposites in the way they react to situations though. Still, it is quite fun to write two different situations in the same timeline. :) Hopefully you all still enjoyed it despite it being a shorter one this time!**

 **-AnimeWolfGirl16**


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